Thoughts on life from an Aussie sheila in the UK

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In case you missed it, today is the Chinese New Year and we are now embarking on the Year of the Rooster.

I bought this hand-painted tile in Portugal in 2002

According to the December issue of Director magazine (which I was flicking through yesterday), Roosters are uncomplicated and straightforward. The website travelchinaguide.com also claims that Roosters are “almost the epitome of fidelity and punctuality. For ancestors who had no alarm clocks, the crowing was significant, as it could awaken people to get up and start to work”.

I am an absolute stickler for time-keeping, loyalty and keeping my word (and expecting you to keep yours too!) so it is probably no surprise to you when I say that I am a Rooster.

Anyway, in conducting a bit of research for this post, I learnt that the Chinese Zodiac also assigns one of five elements – fire, earth, water, gold and wood – to each lunar year and that 2017 is a Fire Rooster year.

I have been travelling again this week and with today being first day back in the office, I felt too tired to do my regular walk back up to Charing Cross station, choosing instead to duck into Westminster tube and change at Monument station for the right coloured line to get me home.Day-dreaming about the event free weekend ahead of me, I wandered onto the platform at Bank station – it’s connected with the aforesaid Monument station via a short walk underground – and stood in my regular place, the one that means I get off at the right spot on my destination platform for an expeditious exit ahead of the hordes.Checking the overhead screen to my left, I was pleased to note I had only two minutes to wait so I turned back to face patiently forward (boy I am getting ‘British!’) and found myself rewarded with a couple of commuting gems…

Commuting just got a whole lot more interesting. Shame I don’t subscribe to Sky really…